Western States - Forests Adapting To and Mitigating Climate Change Effects

Urban foresters measure trees in the Park Blocks, Portland, Oregon

This economic recovery project, being organized by John Mills of the PNW Research
Station’s Resource Monitoring and Assessment Program, is using $1,795,000
to create jobs for field crews to gather data on the condition of forests from
approximately 1,000 sites in populated areas in five Western States (Alaska,
California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington). The project uses the protocols
of the Forest Service nationwide Forest Inventory and Analysis Program, and
is being done in collaboration with the Oregon Department of Forestry, California
Polytechnic State University, and others.

To help urban forests adapt and be resilient to a changing climate, we need
to know their current health status. We know that urban forests will change
as the climate changes–shifts in species composition, growth rates, mortality,
and susceptibility to pests are all possible. Having a baseline of urban forest
conditions will allow us to determine if and how urban forests are adapting
to changing conditions and might shed some light on potential mitigations.
Results from this project will be used to evaluate questions about the potential
reduction of energy use due to trees cooling the urban environment, the contribution
of urban trees to carbon sequestration, water management within urban areas,
and quality of life for urban residents. Data collection is expected to be
completed in 2012.